Method for operating a diesel engine

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a method for operating a diesel engine in which an air ratio (λ) of the fuel which is to be burnt and of the combustion air supplied is set by a control unit ( 14 ) according to predetermined values. When a value ( 15 ) which is predetermined as a switching criterion is recorded, the control unit ( 14 ) switches to a special operating mode for regeneration of a catalytic converter ( 22 ) and sets the fuel/air ratio according to predetermined values for this operating mode.  
     To achieve more effective regeneration of the catalytic converter, according to the invention it is provided that at least one afterinjection, which is separated in time from a main injection, of fuel which is also to be burnt takes place in the special operating mode.

[0001] The invention relates to a method for operating a diesel engine of the generic type described in the preamble of claim 1.

[0002] In known methods, an air ratio (of the fuel which is to be burnt and of the combustion air supplied separately is set by a control unit according to predetermined values for the operating state of the engine. The actuators provided for this purpose are acted on by the control unit. The control unit determines the quantity of the fuel which is to be burnt, leading to the desired operating load of the diesel engine being reached. Often, a substoichiometric fuel/air ratio is set, and the diesel engine is to this extent operated with a lean mix being formed. A set value for an operating measurement variable of the diesel engine is predetermined in the control unit as a criterion for switching to a special operating mode; at this set value, a defined fuel/air ratio is to be set according to stipulated values for this special operating mode. This may be the case, for example, if there is a device for exhaust-gas aftertreatment, such as for example a storage catalytic converter, which has to be desorbed at intervals. For this purpose, the special operating mode creates the required desorption atmosphere by setting the fuel/air ratio. A method of this type is known, for example, from DE 197 53 718 C1, which evaluates certain criteria in order to switch between two different combustion processes. When the switching criterion is recorded, the engine is switched to the special operating mode in order to regenerate a storage catalytic converter connected downstream of the diesel engine.

[0003] Switching to a special operating mode of the diesel engine when a defined switching criterion is present is also described in DE 199 39 988 A1, the intention being for a storage catalytic converter to be regenerated with regard to the nitrogen oxide salts in the special operating mode. For this purpose, in the regeneration mode, an exhaust gas which has a reducing action on the catalytic converter is generated in the special operating mode.

[0004] DE 197 50 226 C1 has disclosed an engine control system which controls the operation of a diesel engine as a function of characteristic diagrams. In this case, separate characteristic diagrams for an operating mode with lean combustion and an operating mode with fuel-rich combustion are stored in an engine management unit. The duration of the regeneration of the device for exhaust-gas aftertreatment is very long in the known methods. Also, the driver of a motor vehicle driven by the engine can often feel the switching to the special operating mode and back, which is undesirable.

[0005] The present invention is based on the object of providing a method for operating a diesel engine of the generic type in which the operating conditions are improved in the special operating mode.

[0006] According to the invention, this object is achieved by the features of claim 1.

[0007] According to the invention, in the special operating mode, there is at least one afterinjection of fuel, which is separated in time from the main injection, the time of the afterinjection being set so late in the cycle that the fuel which is injected in the afterinjection is burnt together with the fuel which is already burning. In this way, an exhaust gas with a high temperature and enthalpy is formed. In this way, it is possible both to promote the regeneration of particle filters, in which superstoichiometric operation is provided for, and to achieve efficient sulphur regeneration of NOx storage catalytic converters in substoichiometric mode. The method according to the invention creates exhaust gases which have a reducing action on catalytic converter surfaces both during superstoichiometric combustion, i.e. with a rich mix being formed, and during substoichiometric combustion with a lean fuel/air mix. The total quantity of fuel which is to be burnt is introduced in a plurality of partial injections, it being possible for the quantity of fuel which is delivered prior to the afterinjection which also burns according to the invention to be metered to a plurality of main injections or also any desired number of preinjections. The afterinjection quantity which burns as well can advantageously also be metered in in a plurality of afterinjections.

[0008] It is particularly advantageous for the quantity of fuel in the afterinjection which is also burnt to be metered according to the operating state of the engine, so that ultimately the operating load of the engine is established by setting the afterinjection quantity. It is expediently also possible for the injection time of the afterinjection to be set by the control unit according to the operating state. The partial injections which take place before the afterinjection which is also burnt, with an early combustion position, represent a shaping of the injection profile at which the afterinjection can be matched to the engine operation in terms of quantity and type.

[0009] In an advantageous configuration of the invention, during a switching phase when switching into the special operating mode and back, the control unit increases the quantity of fuel in the afterinjection which is also burnt while, at the same time, reducing the main injection quantity of subsequent cycles by a corresponding amount, until the intended afterinjection quantity is reached. Accordingly, when switching back to the standard operating state, the afterinjection quantity is reduced with a corresponding increase in the main injection quantity. It is thereby possible to produce a transition from the formation of a lean mix with fuel/air ratios λ<1 to fuel-rich combustion with air ratios λ>1. The transition from lean to rich combustion during the switching phase can be carried out with continuously or discontinuously varied quantities in the main injection and the matched afterinjection which is also burnt. An indexed torque of the diesel engine, which is kept constant during the switching phase, is used as control variable for the change in the injection quantities. In this way, the switching or switching back of the operating states takes place without any jerking whatsoever and cannot be felt by the driver of a motor vehicle.

[0010] In order, in the special operating mode, to create the exhaust-gas composition which is required for regeneration of a catalytic converter, it may be expedient to add fuel to the exhaust gas. The fuel which is added is cracked in the exhaust-gas atmosphere, and the hydrocarbon radicals formed contribute to a reduction in the exhaust-gas emissions from the diesel engine. Fuel may be added by means of one or more additional afterinjections which take place following the afterinjections which are also burnt in accordance with the invention. However, it is optionally also possible to provide an injection of fuel into the exhaust pipe of the diesel engine, which can be metered independently of the engine operation in terms of quantity and time.

[0011] The method according to the invention makes it possible to increase the efficiency of the regeneration of NOx adsorber systems, which under certain conditions (storage capacity, active temperature window) store the nitrogen oxides from internal combustion engines during lean combustion (superstoichiometric combustion with λ>1 and accordingly residual oxygen in the exhaust gas). The method according to the invention quickly provides oxygen-free exhaust gas (λ<1) with the maximum possible reducing-agent content, which is required in order to regenerate NOx adsorber systems of this type, i.e. to desorb NOx and, at the same time, convert NOx into nitrogen N2. The afterinjection fuel which is also burnt according to the invention likewise quickly results in high temperatures in the exhaust gas, which are used to remove deposits of sulphur compounds, which act as a catalyst poison. The high temperatures also allow more rapid regeneration of particle filters. After a cold start, known catalytic converters require a certain time before they reach their starting temperature. The use of the combustion method according to the invention allows this time to be shortened compared to known methods, on account of the significantly higher exhaust-gas temperature, with the result that a considerably lower emission of exhaust gases is achieved while the diesel engine is warming up.

[0012] During the setting or controlling of the fuel/air ratio, it is expediently also possible to take account of the quantity of recirculated exhaust gas which is admixed with the fresh air, the control unit driving an exhaust-gas recirculation valve which is arranged in an exhaust-gas recirculation line between the exhaust section and the intake section of the diesel engine as an actuator of the control arrangement. In a refinement of the invention, the control unit, in addition to setting the injection parameters, also controls the pressure of the fresh air which is supplied, expediently by means of throttle devices in the intake region and a turbocharging device in the exhaust region of the diesel engine. Alternatively, the pressure control may be effected by means of the exhaust-gas recirculation valve and the turbocharging device as actuators.

[0013] Furthermore, the control unit advantageously controls the mass throughput of fresh air, the control unit using the exhaust-gas recirculation valve as actuator, taking account of a measurement signal from an air mass flowmeter. The mass throughput can also be controlled by means of throttle valves as actuators. In this case, the control unit coordinates all the actuators and continuously tracks the actuating movements as a function of the recorded control deviations from the set value throughout the entire operating range of the diesel engine. The method according to the invention is implemented even in steady operating states of the diesel engine by means of corresponding preset values on characteristic diagrams. To set a transition which is neutral in terms of load, the air path is continuously adjusted, specifically the induction pipe pressure and the mass flow of fresh air are regulated, before the injection measures are triggered when switching the operating states, i.e. before the injection quantity of fuel in the afterinjection which is also burnt is altered.

[0014] The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to an exemplary embodiment. In the drawing:

[0015]FIG. 1 diagrammatically depicts a diesel engine,

[0016]FIG. 2 shows a diagrammatic illustration of the determination of setting values in the control unit.

[0017]FIG. 1 shows a diesel engine 1 with four cylinders 23, each of which is assigned an injector 25. The injectors 25, which are fed from a common rail, inject fuel directly into the cylinders 23 according to a control signal from a control unit 14, and the fuel is burnt together with combustion air supplied separately. The fresh air is supplied via an intake line 20, to which the cylinders 23 are connected by means of inlet ports 24. The exhaust gas from all the cylinders 23 is discharged via an exhaust pipe 21 and is passed through a catalytic converter 22 before being released to the environment. The exhaust pipe 21 is connected to the intake air line 20 via an exhaust-gas recirculation line 26. After an exhaust-gas recirculation valve 2 has been opened, exhaust gas from the diesel engine 1 can be admixed with the fresh air, the recirculated exhaust gas being cooled by an exhaust-gas cooler 4 before it flows into the intake-air line 20.

[0018] The ratio λ of the fuel injected into the cylinders to the combustion air is determined by the control unit 14 which, by suitably driving the injectors 25, sets the quantity of fuel which they release per cycle and also the quantity of fresh gas supplied to the cylinders 23. Depending on the device used for exhaust-gas aftertreatment (catalytic converter 22), the diesel engine can be operated either with substoichiometric combustion or superstoichiometric, i.e. rich combustion with excess fuel (λ>1), as is necessary, for example, for the desorption of NOx control catalytic converters. If the control unit 14 records the presence of a value, which is predetermined as a switching criterion, of an operating measurement variable 15 of the diesel engine, the engine is switched to a special operating mode for regeneration of the catalytic converter, and a fuel/air ratio which is predetermined for this operating mode is set. To determine the switching criterion it is possible, for example, for the degree of saturation of the catalytic converter 22 to be input to the control unit as measurement signal 15.

[0019] As is diagrammatically depicted in FIG. 2, the control unit 14 has characteristic diagrams, from which it reads control variables, which are suitable as a function of continuously determined operating parameters, for the actuators which it controls in order to set the fuel/air ratio. The control unit is assigned a characteristic-diagram path 17 for setting lean combustion and corresponding characteristic diagrams for all the actuators. A characteristic-diagram path 18 for setting a rich, superstoichiometric combustion includes characteristic diagrams for each actuator which is to be driven, with corresponding control data. Depending on the measured value of the switching criterion 15 (degree of saturation of the catalytic converter), one of the characteristic-diagram paths 17, 18 is opened to be read, as diagrammatically indicated by the setting of a switch 16. During standard operation with lean combustion, in which the characteristic-diagram path 17 with its individual characteristic diagrams is activated, according to the invention the engine is switched to the special operating state when the switching criterion is present, and accordingly is changed to the operating mode with rich combustion.

[0020] Each characteristic-diagram path includes a characteristic diagram with injection parameters for the injectors 25 and for each further actuator which is used by the control unit 14 to set the fuel/air ratio. Expediently, the exhaust-gas recirculation valve 2 is used in this context by the control unit 14 via a control drive 3. The exhaust-gas atmosphere for effective desorption of the catalytic converter 22 is created in the special operating mode, according to the invention, by means of an afterinjection which follows the main injection and also any preinjections, the fuel which is injected at a later stage taking part in the combustion which is already taking place. The setting of the desired exhaust-gas composition is additionally influenced by suitable setting of the exhaust-gas recirculation valve. Furthermore, the control unit 14, by driving a throttle device in the intake-air line 20 and a turbocharging device in the exhaust section, influences the setting of the fuel/air ratio λ.

[0021] The throttle device provided may be a throttle valve 8 in the intake-air line, which is moved by the control unit 14, by means of a control drive 10, via a corresponding actuator 9, into the position which is read out of a corresponding characteristic diagram (FIG. 2). As an alternative to the throttle valve 8 in the intake-air line 20, it is possible for a throttle member 11 to be arranged in each inlet port 24 of the cylinders 23. The control unit 14 sets all the throttle devices 11 in the inlet ports 24 via a common actuator 12 and a control drive 13 acting on the actuator 12. As a further actuator which has an effect on the fuel/air ratio, the control unit 14 acts on a turbocharging device in the exhaust section, which in the present exemplary embodiment is an exhaust-gas turbocharger 5 which comprises a turbine 27 which is acted on by the exhaust gas and a compressor 28 which acts on the fresh air. The actuator 6 of the exhaust-gas turbocharger, which can be set as required by the control unit via the control drive 7, may, for example, be a variably adjustable turbine geometry.

[0022] With the method according to the invention, in the special operating state the diesel engine is operated with an afterinjection which is also burnt and follows any desired number of preinjections and one to two main injections. Furthermore, a further afterinjection, which is spaced apart in time, can be introduced into the combustion chamber, the fuel which is injected in this further afterinjection no longer participating in the combustion and contributing to the creation of an exhaust-gas atmosphere which can be purified more efficiently by the catalytic converter over a longer operating time. The afterinjection according to the invention is designed in such a way in terms of injection time and duration that superstoichiometric or substoichiometric air ratios can be created as required. The maximum pressure rise in the combustion chamber and the position of the maximum pressure rise in time, in the method according to the invention, approximately correspond to the values in standard operation which only involves preinjection and main injection. The engine load is controlled by means of the injection quantity participating in the combustion, i.e., in the special operating mode, with the inclusion of and specific attention to the afterinjection quantity which is also burnt. With the method according to the invention, it is possible to achieve higher exhaust-gas temperatures and enthalpy quickly without an increase in the amount of noise and in this way to increase the efficiency of catalytic converters including, in particular, during the warming-up phase.

[0023] The proportions of the main injection quantity and of the afterinjection quantity in the total injection quantity and the changes therein during the transition phase when changing the operating mode from rich to lean combustion and vice versa are set by the control unit as a function of one or more operating parameters 19 (FIG. 2). The following physically measurable variables are suitable as operating parameters which can be used to read the characteristic diagrams for the operating mode which is to be selected in each case:

[0024] engine torque and its derivative

[0025] engine speed and its derivative

[0026] driving speed of a vehicle driven by the diesel engine

[0027] drive position/gear

[0028] total injection quantity

[0029] air mass and its derivative

[0030] coolant temperature

[0031] outside air temperature

[0032] induction pipe temperature

[0033] exhaust-gas temperature

[0034] atmospheric pressure

[0035] induction-pipe pressure

[0036] exhaust-gas pressure 

1. Method for operating a diesel engine, in which an air ratio of the fuel which is to be burnt and of the combustion air supplied is set by a control unit (14) in accordance with predetermined values for the operating state of the engine (1) by driving actuators (2, 5, 8, 11, 25) provided for this purpose, and in the process the quantity of fuel to be burnt which corresponds to the required operating load of the diesel engine (1) is determined, the control unit (14), when it records a value, which is intended to be a switching criterion, of an operating measurement variable (15) of the diesel engine, switches to a special operating mode for regeneration of an exhaust-gas aftertreatment device and sets the fuel/air ratio according to preset values for this operating mode, characterized in that in the special operating mode at least one afterinjection of fuel, which is separated in time from a main injection, takes place at such a late time during the cycle that the fuel injected in this afterinjection is burnt with the fuel which has previously been metered in and ignited.
 2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that the quantity of fuel which is also to be burnt in the afterinjection is metered according to the operating state of the diesel engine (1).
 3. Method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the control unit (14) sets the injection time for the afterinjection for the fuel which is also to be burnt according to the operating state of the diesel engine (1).
 4. Method according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the control unit (14), during a switching phase when switching into the special operating state and back, increases the quantity of fuel in the reinjection which is also to be burnt while at the same time reducing the quantity in the main injection by a corresponding amount in subsequent cycles, until the intended afterinjection quantity is reached, or when switching back to a standard operating state reduces the afterinjection quantity with a corresponding increase in the main injection quantity.
 5. Method according to claim 4, characterized in that the corresponding change in the main injection quantity and in the afterinjection quantity which is also to be burnt during the switching phase is controlled taking account of a control variable.
 6. Method according to claim 5, characterized in that the control variable used is an indexed torque of the diesel engine (1) which is kept constant during the switching phase.
 7. Method according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that additional fuel is added to the exhaust gas in order to create the intended fuel/air ratio in the exhaust gas.
 8. Method according to claim 7, characterized in that the additional fuel is added to the exhaust gas by an additional afterinjection following the afterinjection of fuel which is also to be burnt.
 9. Method according to claim 8, characterized in that the additional fuel is added to the exhaust gas in an exhaust pipe of the diesel engine (1).
 10. Method according to one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that in the standard operating mode a superstoichiometric or substoichiometric fuel/air ratio is set, and in the special operating mode a substoichiometric or superstoichiometric fuel/air ratio is set.
 11. Method according to one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the control unit (14), during the setting of the fuel/air ratio, takes account of the quantity of recirculated exhaust gas which is admixed with the fresh gas and drives an exhaust-gas recirculation valve (2) in an exhaust-gas recirculation line (26) of the diesel engine (1) as an actuator for controlling the fuel/air ratio.
 12. Method according to one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that the control unit (14) controls the pressure of the fresh air supplied.
 13. Method according to claim 12, characterized in that the fresh air pressure is controlled by means of throttle valves (8, 11) and an adjustable turbocharging device (5) as actuators.
 14. Method according to claim 12, characterized in that the fresh-air pressure is controlled by means of the exhaust-gas recirculation valve (2) and an adjustable turbocharging device (5) as actuators.
 15. Method according to one of claims 12 to 14, characterized in that the control unit (14) controls the mass throughput of fresh air.
 16. Method according to claim 15, characterized in that the mass throughput is controlled by means of the exhaust-gas recirculation valve (2) as actuator, taking account of a measurement signal from an air mass flowmeter.
 17. Method according to claim 15, characterized in that the mass throughput is controlled by throttle members (8, 11) as actuators.
 18. Method according to one of claims 1 to 17, characterized in that the control unit tracks all the actuators (2, 6, 9, 12, 25) which it drives as a function of the recorded control deviation throughout the entire operating range of the diesel engine (1). 